Healing Blueberry Muffins
Time taken: An hour max.
Ingredients: 200g all-purpose wholewheat flour, 2 ½ teaspoons
baking powder, a pinch of salt, 25g rolled oats, 3 eggs, 75g brown sugar, 2
tablespoons honey, 175g plain yoghurt, 75g coconut oil, & 200g frozen
blueberries.
Hi readers,
So, that’s another week gone by. Another week of 2015. Of
Spring. Of May. Of our existence. How are you?? How has your week been? Think
back to Monday morning, think to now, is life any better? Any worse? Much
different? Reflect! Think back on your week and I wonder what you’ve got up to.
For me, this week has been one hell of a week. Definitely! The
end of Third Year isn’t an easy nut to crack! This is the week that I’ve
launched revision about the Earth’s polar environments. The week that I made it
through a Spanish speaking exam without crying. The week that me and some of
the geography girls presented to a roomful of people about ice streams in the
Antarctic Peninsula. The week that I wrote 3 essays about representations of
Africa. In about as many days. It’s been… productive to say the least.
Also, this has been the week that I met up with my friend
from Montreal!! Who I haven’t seen in SO LONG. This is one of my fun-loving
first year uni flatmates, who moved back to Canada in 2013… and isn’t 2013 so
long ago?? It’s forever ago! So this lovely girly made the trip back to Europe
this week to catch up with all the friends that she made in her year abroad.
Such a big trip for her and we were all so glad to see her! Catching up on 2
years missed is so weird… and also it was like she never left!
My new life goal? Is to get to Canada to pay her a visit. Never
forget to appreciate each and every friend you have, wherever they may be in
the world. Been meaning to send someone a message or write them a letter? I sayyyy
DO IT. Seize the day! Feel the love.
Readers, also (brace yourself for EVEN MORE wisdom)… plan
all the trips in the world but try not to trip over yourself. This has been the
week that I tripped over. Jogging for the bus to work in Friday morning, I hit
the ground. Quite hard. Ripped my tights, bloodied both knees, grazed one hand
and one elbow, damaged my baby my iPod, and also spectacularly my new iPhone on
my tenth day of owning it. Shit hit the fan, readers. Shit hit the fan.
I think when you’re at your pinnacle of tiredness and
stress, and suddenly you find yourself lying on a pavement feeling your pulse
in your ruined knees, a small part of you gives in. It does. Well, it did for
me. I made it to work for medical treatment (I’m fine). Made it through the
day. Through a big meeting. And then, with little left to give in life, retired
to a sunny patch of grass with Woody. Met Floss and MissMuddle for cocktails,
food, beers, comedy club.
I’m recovered (more or less) and am taking life a little
easier. Yesterday, I finally got to have a drink at The Botanist. It did not
disappoint. Pressed an owl print at an art open night. Lost this. Learned some
stuff about octopuses. Today, I got to go over to my family friends’ house for
a lovely lunch. Sat in their conservatory and listened to birdsong. Helped to
build a Rice Krispie volcano for a school project. I couldn’t go empty handed
so I baked some blueberry muffins to take along. Really healthy ones. Shared
these with the flatmates and spread some happiness. Had one myself.
As is QUITE EVIDENT I’ve lost the will with revision. Tuesday’s
exam could be a sorry affair. But there’s still tomorrow to turn it around with
revision!! And you never know. :) Miracles do happen! How do you feel about the
week ahead, readers? Good? Bad? Ugly? Cheer up! One thing I DEFINITELY
prescribe to improve even the trickiest of Mondays? A batch of Healing
Blueberry Muffins. I promise, these babies will make you feel good outside and
in. They’re feelgood-factor-assured. Goodness is guaranteed. Happiness lies
just one bake away. Need these in your life?
Here’s how you bake up some smashingly Healing Blueberry Muffins,
in just ten easy steps:
1. Heat your oven to 180˚C.
2. Line a muffin tray with 12 muffin cases.
3. In a mixing bowl, measure out your flour, baking powder
and salt.
4. Then, add your oats, eggs and sugar.
5. Scoop your coconut oil into a small bowl and melt in the
microwave for a minute.
6. Add your honey, yoghurt and melted coconut oil to the
mixing bowl.
7. Take a wooden spoon and mix all the ingredients in your
bowl together into a lumpy batter.
8. Pop your frozen blueberries in a small bowl and add a
teaspoon of flour. Stir your frozen blueberries around until they’re all coated
in flour.
ChefBeHere Top Tip: This is optional, I suppose, the flour just stops them turning everything blue.
9. Fold your floury frozen blueberries gently into the muffin
batter. Be careful not to overmix!
10. Spoon your mix evenly between each muffin case (they
should all be full to about the top) and pop your muffins in the oven to bake
for 20-25 minutes! Take them out when they’re risen and golden brown, and when
a knife jabbed into the centre of one comes out clean. Leave to cool on a wire
rack for at least 20 minutes before tucking in!
And hey presto…
One batch of Healing Blueberry Muffins!
This recipe is based upon an American one that I found HERE
on a wonderfully titled blog, Not Enough Cinnamon. Go check it
out.
So, with brown sugar and honey instead of white sugar, yoghurt
and coconut oil instead butter, wholewheat flour instead of white, 1 of your
5-a-day inside… there is NOTHING BAD about these muffins! Literally, there isn’t.
And they taste so good! Really moist and wholesome and cakey. I’m more than
happy with these muffins. Readers, these muffins are making me happy! They’re
healing, I swear, and definitely a recipe I’ll be rolling out in the future.
Plus, this recipe has been an intro for me to the world of
frozen blueberries. They’re well cheap! Frozen blueberries, readers, cost
really lots less than refrigerated ones and you can store them for any amount
of time. They taste just as good as fresh fruit would in your baking. Looks
like a blueberry, taste like a blueberry, costs about the same as a raisin!
Cue, a running blueberry theme to up and coming ChefBeHere blog posts. Sorry,
not sorry!
Readers, whether you may be students, workers, astronauts,
superheroes, movie stars, Antarctic explorers… if there’s any part of you that
feels right now that you might benefit from a Healing Blueberry Muffin. Or your
friends/family/flatmates are in need, maybe? Then GO BAKE. Do not hesitate or
delay. Muffins today.
Jog safely,
Hayley
